My two favorite genres are Fighting Games and RPGs. Probably diametric opposites. But sometimes they intersect—usually in Action RPGs. They hold the same adrenaline gameplay as the best fighting games. And sometimes those action elements creep into traditional turn-based RPGs. Enter Expedition 33. I approach these games like fighting games. Hitboxes, hurtboxes, i-frames, startup frames—this is how I read combat. But Expedition 33 broke me. The parry window felt impossible despite “clear” telegraphing. Camera angles obscured tells. Visual noise cluttered timing. Input lag stacked on top.
Now, in Expedition 33‘s defense, they do offer an Easy mode. Timings are more forgiving, parry less necessary. But if you want challenge, this mode completely neuters difficulty. There’s this weird liminal space: “can’t play Normal because it’s too difficult, but Easy is too easy and unfulfilling.” A strange limbo I’ve felt in many games. Never in fighting games—there’s always a pathway to improve.
I have below-average reaction speed due to neurological disabilities. In fighting games, I compensate with frame data. I study numbers, internalize timing, practice with precision. Expedition 33 offers no such tool. Neither does Elden Ring, despite demanding equally strict execution. This isn’t about difficulty. It’s about transparency. Fighting games respect player intelligence with frame data. Action RPGs hide mechanics behind “feel” and tell us to practice harder. Some of us can’t practice our way to faster reflexes. But we can study. We can learn. If the games would just show us the numbers.
The “Git Gud” Fallacy
Action RPGs love to hide their mechanics. Parry windows, dodge i-frames, enemy attack startups—all buried under “feel” and visual telegraphing. The assumption: players will learn through repetition, internalize timing through death.
This works for some. It doesn’t work for everyone. My reaction speed sits below average due to neurological disabilities. I cannot practice my way to faster reflexes. The neural pathways don’t rewire that way. What I can do is learn. I can study frame data, understand exactly when a parry window opens and closes, internalize the numbers until execution becomes knowledge-based rather than reflex-based.
But Expedition 33 won’t show me the numbers. Elden Ring won’t either. And unlike other mechanics—builds, stats, equipment—no one has compiled frame data spreadsheets for Expedition 33 and other games alike. The information probably exists in the code, buried deep. But extracting it would be a massive undertaking, and no dataminer has cared enough to try. “Just watch the enemy,” the games say. As if camera angles never obscure tells. As if visual noise never clutters the read. As if input lag doesn’t stack on top of biological delay.
The result is exclusion. Not intentional, but real. Players who need transparency get “Easy mode”—a mode that removes challenge entirely rather than helping us meet it.
Fighting Games Already Solved This
Fighting games respect player intelligence. They show frame data—startup, active, recovery. They offer training modes with dummy opponents, hitbox overlays, input display. When I struggle with a matchup in Street Fighter, I don’t grind matches hoping to internalize timing. I lab it. I study.
This isn’t “easy mode.” It’s information mode. The difficulty stays intact. The execution still demands precision. But I can learn that precision through knowledge, not just reflex. Action RPGs borrow fighting game adrenaline without borrowing fighting game transparency. They demand frame-perfect inputs—Expedition 33 parries, Elden Ring roll catches—then hide the frames.
But high-speed action games already bridge this gap. Ninja Gaiden, Bayonetta, Lost Soul Aside—all include training modes. Valkyrie Profile 1 and 2 let players practice combos in isolation, hone timing for maximum optimization. Decades-old precedent. The tools exist. The blueprint is there.
What I’m Asking For
I don’t want easier games. I want transparent ones. Give me a training mode. Let me practice against dummy enemies, hone tactile skills—parries, dodges, defensive maneuvers. Then add frame data: startup frames, active frames, recovery. Show me hitboxes and hurtboxes. Let me turn on input display to see exactly where my timing fails. This shouldn’t be unique to RPGs. High-speed action games—Ninja Gaiden, Bayonetta, Lost Soul Aside—have training modes for tactile practice. They could benefit from frame data too. Every game demanding precision could offer transparency. Give me enemy logs with numerical data. Not just lore—mechanics. Attack speeds, parry windows, i-frame timing. Let me study before I fight.
This isn’t dumbing down. The difficulty remains. The skill ceiling stays high. But the floor becomes accessible to players who learn differently. Some of us can’t practice our way to faster reflexes. But we can study our way to better execution. We just need the games to meet us halfway.
“It’s Not That Deep”
I’ve heard this. Action RPGs aren’t fighting games. The frame data doesn’t matter. Just play Easy mode.
Easy mode isn’t the solution—it’s a different problem. It removes the challenge entirely rather than helping me meet it. I don’t want to bypass difficulty. I want to understand it. And “not that serious” ignores the reality: players already create spreadsheets, datamine mechanics, compile guides for crafting, item drops, character builds, stats. The community does this work constantly. It’s seen as dedication, as taking the game seriously. But ask for frame data—numerical transparency on combat timing—and suddenly it’s “too extreme,” “not that kind of game.” At least for the Elden Ring community, there are resources for frame data.
Why is information acceptable for builds but extreme for combat? Both are just understanding systems. Both respect player intelligence. Fighting games prove this works. Street Fighter offers frame data without losing its edge. Guilty Gear stays technical. Information doesn’t dilute difficulty. Some players need that information to participate fully. Not because we’re lazy. Because our brains work differently. Because reaction speed isn’t trainable for everyone. Because “git gud” assumes abilities not everyone has. The games can meet us halfway. They just choose not to.
The Numbers Already Exist
Other accessibility solutions might compromise the game—adjusting frame timings, widening parry windows, changing core mechanics. Easy mode already does this, and for some players, that’s enough. But for others, it removes the challenge entirely rather than helping us meet it.
There’s a middle path. Street Fighter 3’s “Parry Training” didn’t change the game—it made the timing visible, practiceable, understandable. Frame data works the same way. The numbers already exist in the code. Hitboxes and hurtboxes are already calculated. The game knows exactly when a parry window opens and closes. It just doesn’t tell the player. Make it a toggle to turn on and off. If you don’t need it, you don’t have to use it. But the option should be available for those who would benefit from it. For players like me—who learn through study, not reflex—that toggle changes everything.
The numbers exist. Let us see them.
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